The Shade Who Rode
by UnitedHaruDinmarkOreo's Books
Summary: Her name was Serra. A Shade for hire. She was chosen. And now she is hunted. Eragon is dead. Oromis is dead. And Arya hates her. Will she do what is right when the time comes? Will she help her sister, Kyra, warrior-princess of the Varden? Or will she abandon them all for her own safety? After all, they did nothing for her when she was in need... (Modern AU)


**(Life was empty before I found out FanFictions were actually a "thing") Alright guys, I'm trying something different out now... This is my first fic about this series. I've practically mobbed the Inheritance Cycle wiki page but I still might make a few mistakes in lore which is completely fine as this is Modern AU. Still, if you feel the need to give some tips (which would be very welcome) then leave a review, or maybe even message me if you're that type of person (I come on FanFiction everyday so I'll reply ASAP). If you like any of the easter eggs or references to the books than please show your appreciation. Don't forget to fav and follow and check out some of my other fics which you can easily find on my profile. I'm planning on also writing a Hunger Games, Harry Potter, Mortal Instruments Crossover if anyone wants to know more just leave it in a review.  
****DISCLAIMER: *speaks in an obviously rehearsed monotone* I do not own The Inheritance Cycle, it belongs to Christopher Paolini and/or other respective owners, I only own Serra and this fic. Only in my wildest dreams would I ever hope to own this franchise (Also in my wildest dreams I would like to own Batman, Throne of Glass, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Darksiders, inFAMOUS, Spider-Man, Assassin's Creed AND EVERY OTHER AWESOME THING IN THE WORLD... BUT THE WORLD IS TOO CRUEL TO GRANT IT TO ME :'( WHYYYYYY!?)**

**Thanx and PEACE!  
****Oreo**

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Chapter 1: Shade of Fear.

The complex was one of the most heavily guarded the 17-year-old had ever seen. A robust gate topped with barbed wire surrounded a large field with a small concrete windowless building in the centre. The field itself was a clever defense, it meant that dozens of heavily armed guards could patrol with ease and any intruders would have to cross a significant distance while being completely exposed - even under the cover of night, thanks to the floodlights that were lit 24/7. And the guards themselves were part of a larger security structure; each would report to their superior every ten minutes and they would report to _their_ superiors at a different time and so on. Because of this, they would know if one of them had been killed or otherwise incapacitated by an intruder preventing many different infiltration techniques. And it also meant that if someone _had_ managed to enter the heavily guarded gate, they would get nowhere near the actual building. The anti-air guns dotted around the building and the automatic turrets stopped any sort of assault that the guards themselves couldn't deal with. And even if someone actually managed to get past all of that, they still had to get through the 16-inch-thick titanium doors, and they'd find out that blowing through the eight metres of concrete that covered every other part of the stout building is completely impossible. It even proved difficult to find, hidden deep within the uncharted areas of the three-million square kilometres of the Boreal forest.

Contrary to what the government of Canada said, the complex was not a nuclear testing site, it was far too small for that purpose. In fact, it was being used to keep a very rare and extremely dangerous object under... protection. The only 'testing' that was taking part was on this very object. This was the very thing that Serra had come for. And she was paid a small fortune to retrieve it, so she planned to deliver. Her employer was an Elf called Oromis. He was the first Elf Serra had actually talked to and they had agreed a secret place to meet, Oromis didn't want the other Elves to know that he had hired _her _but she guaranteed success and she had never disappointed any of her previous employers, as was her reputation. Still, it was that very reputation that made him uneasy. And the rumours, although he was intelligent enough not to completely believe them, kept giving him second thoughts. Nevertheless, Oromis hired Serra to obtain this object and claimed that if she could not then the entire world would suffer from the loss. Serra believed him, the ancient Elven language in which he spoke did not allow him to lie, but assured the Elf that she would not fail.

Now looking at the fortifications of the complex, a normal person would have second thoughts about that assurance, an army would have trouble getting past the first few defenses. But Serra was far from a 'normal' person. The same rules did not apply. She took a few steps backwards until she was far enough away from the gate, and adopted a slightly crouched position. Her black leather suit - which was strong enough to protect her and still light and flexible enough for her use - hid her within the shadows of the trees but her wine-red hair and blood-red eyes were slightly more visible. She sprang forwards with impossible grace, it was as if her every movement was a precisely calculated procedure, and launched herself into a powerful jump. She tucked her legs close to her stomach and flew straight over the barbed wire of the 15-foot-high gate. Extending her legs mid-air and then bending them again as soon as her feet touched the ground was a maneuver that ensured no noise whatsoever and one that she executed perfectly. The guard less than five metres away noticed a flash of red - her hair - out of the corner of his right eye and turned around, swiftly raising his automatic rifle.

"Slytha!" Serra whispered just loud enough to hear herself. The air shimmered around the guard and he fell to the ground. A few seconds later he was snoring, fast asleep. The crimson-haired teenager smiled. She had timed her entrance as efficiently as possible, giving herself the maximum amount of time until the rest of the guards realise what has happened. 10 minutes. But that's all she needed. "Gata Abr Sundavar!" She raised both hands and the ground rippled like a pond. She had invented the spell herself, its purpose was to create a direct path to her destination that assured that she would not be detected - provided that no one got close. She ran silently along her path, evading dozens of guards and two automatic turrets, until she had almost arrived at the door of the building. The entire building was surrounded by bright flood lights, meaning that she couldn't get to the entrance without walking through a brightly lit area. Her magic path also stopped as soon as the light started. But Serra had already planned what to do. She glanced at her watch: 9 minutes left.

"Garjzla." She thrust her hands towards the lights and they short-circuited. Stealthily, the teenager darted towards the entrance of the concrete building. The titanium door may have proved difficult to breach, had she not been a sorcerer. "Ma'mor!" This spell needed a bit more energy than the last ones, but she executed it effortlessly. The heavy metal doors opened with a hiss of the hydraulics and Serra slipped inside before anyone noticed what had happened. "Shu'zïghn!" and the door closed behind her, the floodlights outside flickered back to life; dampening the guards' suspicions. She knew exactly which way to go, the object radiated a type of magical energy that she could sense. She looked at her wrist: 7 minutes left.

The corridors were lightly guarded, no one was expected to get past the defenses. When she did encounter anyone, she would cast a sleeping spell upon them. The cameras that were stationed at almost every corner didn't pose any problems either; when Serra had entered the building, she had cast a spell that clouded their lenses. She had 6 minutes left. A left turn took her to a circular metal door. She could sense the object just behind them. She raised her hand.

"Ma'mor." Nothing happened. Cursing, Serra raised both hands and drew as much magic as she could into the spell. "_Ma'mor!_" Tiny beads of sweat collected on her forehead. The door shuddered and clicked but still refused to open. With a growl, she abandoned her method, took a few steps back and concentrated a destructive amount of energy into the word: "BRISINGR!" Two roaring streams of blood-red fire erupted from her hands and hastily ate away at the metal. Her arms shook from the strain of the spell but, after two long minutes, the door finally gave way. Gasping with exhaustion, Serra carefully stepped through the hole in the door, wary of the melting edges.

"Hey, you!" A guard was running towards her. She didn't have the magic to waste on putting him to sleep, so she charged towards him before he could shoot at her and launched an impossibly powerful kick to his abdomen. The guard doubled over in excruciating pain as his liver started to bleed from the vicious attack. Another blow to the head knocked him out. She went back through the hole in the door and found herself staring at the brightly lit marble and gold altar inside. On top of it, resting on a purple silk cushion, was a silver oval shaped stone. Her objective. She scooped the stone up from where it lay and examined it, scarlet-coloured veins webbed across the surface and it seemed to radiate light. She knew exactly what the stone really was. 3 minutes left.

Serra hadn't planned on wasting so much of her magical reserves and she would no doubt need more magic to escape. But the stone seemed to slowly refill her energy so she was confident that she would please her employer. That was until Durza arrived. She was on her way out of the building, just two more turns to go, when she almost bumped into the pale-skinned red-haired Shade. He seemed to melt out of the shadows and was obviously expecting Serra. He twisted his mouth into a vile shape and thrust his hand towards her.

"Garjzla!" A bolt of red light shot from his palm.

"Letta!" The bolt flickered out of existence centimetres before it reached her. The Shade glared at her with his crimson eyes and Serra returned his hateful expression.

"Give me the egg, girl, " He hissed, "and I will make your death quick."

"You're going to have to take it from me, Shade." She replied. Her voice had a seductive hint to it, as if her very words were powered by some sort of magic. But there was also a trace of well-hidden fatigue behind it. Durza noticed it.

"You have wasted too much magic," An eerie smile started to play on his lips, "And you are no match for me even when you are at full strength. Hand it over."

Serra sneered at the Shade and glanced at her watch. Only 2 more minute until the guards started to realise something was wrong. The Shade raised his hand again.

"Istrali Boetq!" A ring of fire erupted around Serra's feet.

"Ethgri Adurna!" Water materialised out of thin air and quenched the flames. The Shade hissed in fury and launched a volley of fire balls at the girl but she managed to block each one by creating a wall of water between them. A flick of her hand sent the water surging towards the evil being but a raised fist evaporated it before it reached him. The fight went on like this. Durza and Serra flinging spells at each other and blocking incoming spells, but it soon became evident that the Shade was winning. He laughed with malice and shouted:

"Kveykva!" The very air became electrified and a constant stream of jagged lightning shot towards her. She repeated the spell, almost burning away the rest of her magical reserves, and her lightning bolt met with his in the centre. But Serra could feel her magic dwindling - her entire body was shuddering with the effort of keeping up the spell. Soon her power would fail her and his attack would hit home. Her eyes darted to the dragon egg in her left hand and she suddenly had an ingenious idea. The shell of the egg was meant to be virtually indestructible. It was risky of course, but it was her only bet. She withdrew her spell and raised the the egg so that it was between her and the Shade's lightning. Durza's eyes widened when he realized what she was doing but it was far too late. His spell hit the egg and bounced back at him, striking him directly in the face. He screamed in pain and disappeared into the shadows.

Serra was breathing heavily, she had used up all her magic - save for a small inkling. Hopefully that would be enough. She looked at her wrist. Her time was up.

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